One Flower Wednesday......Plus

Well today is Wednesday and I do have a flower to share today. I almost had two but did not finish the second one so it will have to wait. Here is my flower for today. (Edited to add: they do not allow diamonds in the one flower Wednesday showing so I will be posting mine as  "One Diamond Wednesdays" from this point on. Is there anyone out there who is doing diamonds and wants to join me just let me know.)

Next up is "Heartly" my new mouse pin cushion pattern that I have designed based off a mouse my paternal grandmother used to make as a refrigerator magnet. I am still tweaking it but this is the proto type. I will be putting these in my Artfire shop soon. Isn't she cute!

 Everyone in blog land seems to be in a early bird Christmas mode. I am in a Christmas exchange over on A Swap For All Seasons. We are doing matchbox ornaments. Anyhow......I decided to go ahead and put my Tulle Christmas Tree tutorial on my blog now instead of waiting until December. You may want to make one for yourself before the holidays get here or like myself make them for gifts. They make wonderful little gifts for those on your list. Here goes... Supplies Needed:
Tulle about 2yds color of your choosing
Tacky Glue
Cone shaped styrofoam tree
Felt the color of your tulle
Wooden skewer or tooth pic
Scissors
Beads are optional

(1)First take your felt and cut a circle to fit the bottom of the form. Then take your tacky glue and run a bead around the outer edge. You can put some in the center if needed. I usually just put it around the edges. Let dry completely before you move to the next step or it will shift. Believe me I have had it to happen to me over the years that I have been making them. It takes about 20 minutes to dry on the styrofoam.

(2) While the felt and glue are drying cut your tulle into strips. I usually use 2 1/2 inches to 3 inch strips. Any wider and they tend to droop. You can starch the tulle to keep larger cuts stiffer but I prefer to use the smaller ones. Just my preference.

(3) Now take your strips and cut them into squares. I don't usually measure I just roughly cut what I think a square should be.

 (4) Now when you have your squares ready the bottom should be dry enough for you to handle without movement. Take your wood pick and three to four of your squares, put the skewer in the middle and hold next to the form. Push in enough to hold the tulle in place without falling back out. You can put a dot of glue on the tulle if you like. Just remember to let it dry for 24hrs. before you add any beads or such. Also, I have used hot glue and if it is too hot it will melt both the form and the tulle.

 Continue with this step until you have completely covered your form making sure there are no empty or thin spaces. You want the tree to be full and thick. When finished your tree should look like this. These are fun and quick to make and are wonderful in all different colors. You can customize them for any decor.

 The tree above I did not put beading on as I just wanted the tree to be as it was. These look really good in groupings of three or more. They also make great little trees for small places and nooks that we normally do not have decorations because of the size. I hope you enjoy the tutorial and if you make a tree please let me know so I can come by your blog and have a look see.

Happy Stitching,
Wendy